Raising capital is critical to the success of many companies. However, women-owned businesses face unequal challenges when it comes to securing business financing and investments. Despite the fact that women owned more than 40% of businesses in the U.S. by 2019, almost 98% of venture capital for new startups went to male founders in 2020.
Women business owners often struggle to qualify for business loans at a disproportionate rate compared with their male counterparts. Only 12% of women business owners said they received the full financing amount they sought from lenders in 2021 compared to 14% of male-owned businesses, according to the Federal Reserve’s 2021 Small Business Credit Survey. It’s also important to note that 80% of women business owners and 82% of businesses owned by men sought Covid-19 relief funding through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) that year.
When business loans and equity financing prove difficult to come by, female entrepreneurs can consider business grants for women, too. Competition for business grants can be high, but, if you qualify, you can gain an infusion of cash for your company that you never have to repay.
Private Small Business Grants for Women
- Amber Grant
- SoGal Startup Grant
- FedEx Small Business Grant Contest
- Cartier Women’s Initiative Award
- GrantsforWomen.org
- Eileen Fisher Women-owned Business Grant
- Tory Burch Foundation
- The Halstead Grant
- The Girlboss Foundation Grant
- National Association for the Self-Employed Growth Grants
- Grants.gov
- Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Programs
- Program for Investors in Microentrepreneurs (PRIME)
1. Amber Grant
At 19 years old, Amber Wigdahl passed away before she had the chance to turn her business-related dreams into reality. In 1998, WomensNet founded the Amber Grant program in the aspiring entrepreneur’s honor.
Later, WomenNet expanded its program to include grants for:
- Marketing
- Different business categories
- Monthly ($10,000) and year-end grants ($25,000)
The organization awards at least $35,000 in grant money each month. The funding is available to eligible women-owned businesses whose applications stand out to the selection committee.
Application Process
You can submit applications for Amber Grants online. A single application enters you for all grants that you and your business are eligible to receive. The organization reviews the applications it receives each month and announces new monthly grant winners by the 23rd of the following month.
2. SoGal Startup Grant
The SoGal Startup Grant is a program that aims to support Black women entrepreneurs. Although this demographic is the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs (at any point in recorded history), Black women founders receive less than 0.5% of venture capital funding.
Winners of the SoGal Startup Grant get a cash award of either $5,000 or $10,000 in startup funding. They also receive professional guidance to help navigate the fundraising process. This benefit aims to even the business playing field, promoting a more equitable chance for black women founders to scale their businesses.
Application Process
To be eligible for a SoGal Startup Grant, you need to identify as a Black woman or nonbinary entrepreneur (multiracial individuals in these categories may also apply). Additionally, you must own a business that’s legally registered, demonstrate a plan to seek investor capital and share your business idea—an idea with the potential to scale to a billion-dollar business.
3. FedEx Small Business Grant Contest
FedEx developed the FedEx Small Business Grant Contest as a way to support U.S. small businesses that were impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Grant recipients receive checks for $50,000 (grand prize winner), plus additional credits (up to $7,500) to use at FedEx Office for business printing services.
Application Process
Applicants need to be U.S.-based small businesses (for-profit), earn under $5 million in annual sales, and have shipped goods in the preceding 12-month period. Eligible businesses can create a FedEx account and enter the 2022 grant contest until February 28, 2022. The voting period and when FedEx announces the top 100 winners runs from March 22-31, 2022. The final winners are announced May 4, 2022.
4. Cartier Women’s Initiative Award
In 2006, Cartier Women’s Initiative founded an annual program with the goal of empowering female entrepreneurs. Businesses that are women-owned or women-led can apply for the awards, including:
- Awards across 10 regions. A total of three grants are awarded per region, totaling to 30 grant awards. Each first-place awardee receives $100,000; each second-place awardee receives $60,000; and each third-place awardee receives $30,000.
- Science & Technology Pioneer Award. The award amounts are the same as for the regional awards.
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award. Cartier Women’s Initiative doesn’t yet disclose the award amounts for this grant, but the next application window will open May 16, 2022. You can sign up for a newsletter on Cartier Women’s Initiative website to get more information on this award.
Application Process
You can download the application for the Cartier Women’s Initiative regional awards online. To be eligible, you’ll need to demonstrate that your business is woman-owned or woman-run, and has a mission of making a meaningful and sustainable impact on society or the environment. Applications for 2023 grants will open on May 16, 2022, and close on July 15, 2022.
Eligible grant applicants also need to:
- Own or run for-profit businesses
- Be in the early stages of development (between one to five years)
- Show that it’s been earning revenue from sales (goods or services) for at least one year
- Have raised a minimum of $2 million in funding
- Meet at least one of the United Nations’s Sustainable Development Goals
5. GrantsforWomen.org
Founded in 2000, GrantsforWomen.org is an online platform that helps women business owners find and research a variety of grant and scholarship opportunities. The platform aims to enable women around the world to achieve their business-related goals.
Application Process
The grant application process varies from one program to the next. GrantsforWomen.org can help you discover grants that might be a good fit for your business. From there, you’ll need to follow the instructions provided by those individual organizations when you’re ready to fill out an application.
Michelle Black and Colin Beresford, in their article “3 Business Grants For Women: Receive Free Money,” outline key grant opportunities available to women entrepreneurs looking to fund their businesses.
To learn more about these grants and how to apply, you can read the full article by Michelle Black and Colin Beresford on Forbes.
